North Central grad, school board veteran pursues teaching career

June 1, 2010—Jeannette Clark is no stranger to the education process, having served Naperville and Aurora for 16 years as a member of the Indian Prairie School District 204 Board of Education.

Now, Clark is preparing to gain a whole new perspective on education—from within a classroom. She’s graduating from North Central College with a degree in elementary education and pursuing a career as a teacher.

Clark and about 650 other undergraduate and graduate students will participate in North Central’s Commencement during the College's 145th graduation exercises at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 12, at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium, 455 S. Brainard St.

Clark served on Indian Prairie’s school board for four full terms, from 1993 to 2009. During her tenure—which included two years as board president—Indian Prairie successfully passed four referendums, hired three superintendents and opened 16 new schools during a period of rapid residential growth in the area.

Upon her retirement from the school board, the Illinois General Assembly approved a resolution recognizing “her dedication to lifelong learning and commitment to continuous improvement as a school board member.” The resolution noted her additional civic involvement as president of the Naperville
Area Homeowners Confederation (NAHC), as a member of the League of Women Voters and for being active at her local church.

During her years on the school board, Clark was a homemaker. She and her husband, Jeff, a patent/trademark attorney, raised three children: Greg, TJ and Katie. TJ and Katie attend the University of Illinois; Greg, a doctor, works in the northwest suburbs. Clark had earned an associate’s degree years ago but put her college career on hold while she raised her family. At North Central, Clark is being honored as the Outstanding Major in Elementary Education.

“Elementary educators today need to be ready to teach all types of diverse learners—by bringing each student to the curriculum, rather than bringing the curriculum to the students,” Clark says.

Founded in 1861, North Central College is an independent, comprehensive college of the liberal arts and sciences that offers more than 55 undergraduate majors and graduate programming in six areas. Located in Naperville, Ill., North Central is recognized as one of “America’s Best Colleges” by U.S. News & World Report, which cites it as one of the top six schools in the Midwest for “Strong Commitment to Undergraduate Teaching”; as “a college for high-achieving students” by Peterson’s Competitive Colleges; and as one of “America’s Best Colleges” by Forbes. For more information about North Central College visit www.northcentralcollege.edu.